Octogen Posted June 6, 2004 Author Share Posted June 6, 2004 06 June 04 Warm up 1 x 7" x 1/4" HRS 1 x 6" x 1/4" HRS Bending 5 x 5 1/2" x 5.6mm nails A few weeks ago these were a max bend but now i'm going to use these nails for volume work and start increasing the number I bend each week. After frying myself bending too often last month i'm backing off to two workouts a week and will bend volume one day and more challenging stock the other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted June 7, 2004 Share Posted June 7, 2004 Great progress Don! Have you tried the Blue yet? You mentioned earlier that you were going to be getting some. They're one heck of a benchmark. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 7, 2004 Author Share Posted June 7, 2004 Bencrush, yeah i managed to bend a blue (only just) last week on my first attempt. I forgot to post that in my bending log My next goal is to bend a grade 5 by the start of October when i'll be flying over to St Paul for the Dragondoor kettlebell course. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted June 7, 2004 Share Posted June 7, 2004 Excellent work on the Blue! I still find myself smiling when I bend one...even though they're much easier the more I bend. I do still use them as a benchmark to measure where I'm at. Have you tried bending the 5/16" HRS yet? After you get used to bending some of that, rest a bit and try a Blue. You should absolutely MELT it! I did that after messing around with some thick stuff-and the Blue felt like a swizzle stick, I assume because my body was geared up for the thicker bends. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 7, 2004 Author Share Posted June 7, 2004 I don't have any 5/16 yet but i'll be getting some soon. dispencer just did a nice bending progression list so i'll be working through that on the way to the G5 and then who knows what. The blue was at my absolute limit of strength when I bent it, even 1% harder and I think I would have failed! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 9, 2004 Author Share Posted June 9, 2004 The blue was at my absolute limit of strength when I bent it, even 1% harder and I think I would have failed! 09 June 04 turns out I was wrong about the blue as I set a new PR with a 5 1/2" blue today. Bending Warmup 1 x 7 x 1/4" HRS 1 x 6 x 1/4" HRS Max bends 1 x 6 x 1/4" CRS 1 x 5 1/2" IM blue. Another significant struggle but I won Seems my new plan of bending just twice a week is working, I felt very fresh and the first CRS bend felt like 3/16" HRS. Grade 5 by October is firmly in my sights now Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 11, 2004 Author Share Posted June 11, 2004 12 June 04 Its 0930 on Saturday morning with another 8 hours of shift to go and i've been awake since 1400 yesterday (bloody shiftwork) I felt crap and realised that if I was going to bend today I had better get it done early or it wasn't going to happen. Volume day Warmup 1 x 7 x 1/4" HRS 2 x 5 1/2" grade 2s (These were meant to be tough but the batch I have must be soft cause they were dead easy.) Main bends 2 x 6" grade 2s (heaps harder than the 5 1/2" bolts, funny cause they are the same brand) 6 x 150 x 5.6mm nails 11 bends total Could have bent a few more but I only brought 11 bits to work to bend. These nails are reasonably easy to kink but are springy through the crushdown, the G2s are harder to kink but way easier in the crush. Volume may not seem huge but in all resistance training I seem to respond to relatively low volume compared to most people. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikael Siversson Posted June 12, 2004 Share Posted June 12, 2004 Good progress! Next years Australian championship (not sure if Nick and Arthur is having one this year) is going to be tough. Are you planning on compete? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 12, 2004 Author Share Posted June 12, 2004 Mikael if there is a grip comp on next year I will be there for sure. I'm going to have to work on the other aspects of my grip because my pinch, crush and RT numbers are pathetic at the moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 16, 2004 Author Share Posted June 16, 2004 16 June 04 I guess you can't win them all... Heavy bending day Warmup 1 x 6 1/2" x 1/4" HRS Bends 1 x 5 1/2" x 1/4" CRS 0 x 5" IM blue A 5 degreekink in the blue but I was having trouble just getting a grip on it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mikael Siversson Posted June 16, 2004 Share Posted June 16, 2004 Mikael if there is a grip comp on next year I will be there for sure.I'm going to have to work on the other aspects of my grip because my pinch, crush and RT numbers are pathetic at the moment. Rolling Thunder would not be included in the competition. It would be the same events as in the European Championship (grippers, two hand pinch, vertical bar, one hand lift and bending). Thick bar lifting is great fun but too predictable as far as the results go (you are not winning this event if you have short hands). I do, however, include thick bar lifting in my training. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 20, 2004 Author Share Posted June 20, 2004 19, 20 June 04 No structured bending workout today but I was hanging out at the Sydney fitness convention and expo talking to the local IM and kettlebell distributor and I was trying to convince him to get some bending stuff in so I was demoing a few bends and letting other people try as well. I bent 7 G2s 2 150 x 5.6mm nails 1 IM blue The funniest thing was watching the bodybuilders in the next stand while I was bending the blue. After I was done with the blue I asked them if they wanted to try and they beat a hasty retreat behind their table of supplements I then went to a session called "Feats of Strength" and the lecturer asked us to tell him about any feats that we knew of. I showed him some bending and he had a go at a softish bolt I had. He put a good kink in it but couldn't finish it off. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 23, 2004 Author Share Posted June 23, 2004 23 June 04 Heavy bending day warmup 6" x1/4" HRS x2 Bends 5" x 1/4" CRS x1 5" blue x 0 After last weeks attempt to impale my hands with a blue nail I switched to using a piece of leather for the tougher bends. It protects my hands but i feeel like i'm fighting the wrap as well. The CRS was from a batch tested by dispencer and rates as slightly softer than the IM stock. A 5" piece was tested as being halfway between a blue and the G5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dispencer Posted June 23, 2004 Share Posted June 23, 2004 Hey Don, Good work with the 5" CRS. Now that you've got that the 5" blue will fall in short order. In fact next time you bend heavy I bet you get the 5" blue if you do it first (after warm up). Once you get that 5" Blue try some of the 8mm bunnings stock. Cut to 7" it's just a bit harder than the 5" blue. But, here's the good bit, it doesn't feel nearly so awkward. For my preference the shorter bends always feel harder because of the awkwardness. The 7" 8mm felt great in comparison. Even 6" feels big after bending at 5" ... Now for the really good news, once that 7" x 8mm stock goes down the G5 won't be far behind. The main difference I noticed between the two was in the crush down. The G5 is harder, and it seems to harden up the more you bend it (that is as you stop to rest between bending it). So good work , I expect to hear about that G5 going down a lot sooner than October. BTW. Loved the image of the scurrying body builders when you proffered the steel for them to bend Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 23, 2004 Author Share Posted June 23, 2004 Thanks David Watching the bodybuilders was funny as hell I'll have to go to bunnings this weekend and pick up some 8mm, hopefully it is as soft up here as it is down your way! Otherwise I'll try to get some 1/4" square and more CRS. As you said one of the hardest things with the 5" stock is just getting a grip on it. 5.5" seems to be fine but anything shorter makes it hard to get a kink terminator style before the switch to double overhand. I'd set the October goal for the grade 5 based on taking things slow and steady but the new bending plan is working well and all my training is ahead of schedule. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 28, 2004 Author Share Posted June 28, 2004 (edited) 28 June 04 I was meant to bend volume on Saturday but I ended up thrashing myself on a mountain bike all day and when I got home I was having trouble just staying awake. Anyway I decided to do a light bending session and try a few different wrapping techniques so that I can bend heavy again on Wednesday and get back to my normal training plan of Saturday/Wednesday bending. Tried wrapping the nails in 2, 3"x3" patches of leather, It's harder to get a grip on the nail but I don't feel like the wrap is getting in the way of the bend and I'm not as worried about puncturing my hands. I'm still having trouble with 5" stuff, when I try to kink it my hands run into each other and I struggle. (Any tips appreciated) I also bought some 5/16" HRS the other day and 3 200mm x 9mm timber spikes. I had a go at the 5/16" and I managed to put a tiny kink in it (only visible by rolling it on a table). The Timber spikes are monsters and I think they may be a project for 2005! I'm also running out of CRS and Blue nails so I may have to go on the hunt for some. Bending easy 5 1/2" x 5.6mm nails x 2 hard 5 1/2" x 5.6mm nail x 4 hard nail cut to 5" x 0 Thanks for reading! Edited June 28, 2004 by Octogen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted June 30, 2004 Author Share Posted June 30, 2004 30 June 04 Awful bending session today. HRS felt like CRS and I got nowhere with the 5" blues The shorter stock has really got me stumped Warmup 6" x 1/4" HRS x2 Bends 5" Blue x 0 5" Blue I kinked last week x 0 Everything felt horrible Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted July 6, 2004 Author Share Posted July 6, 2004 05 July 04 Meant to be a volume day but i bought some new stock and i was keen to try it out Got some 1/4" HRS square and some new 1/4" CRS round Unfortunately the square turned out to be really soft, I reckon its as easy as 3/16" round! The 1/4" CRS was also a bit soft, I was hoping to find something that was as hard as the blue nails so I wouldn't have to order more Blues from overseas. Warm up 1x 5.5" x5.6mm nail 2 x 7" x 1/4" square Bends 6" x 1/4" CRS 5" x 1/4" CRS finished of a 5" blue which i kinked but then kinked further by bending it over a bar. Crushing these down is a real pain in the ass! Still chasing a legit bend of a 5" blue but I can't get a decent kink in them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted July 7, 2004 Author Share Posted July 7, 2004 07 July 04 Max bending warm up 6" x 1/4" CRS Bends 1 x 6" grade 5, a very tiny kink only seen when rolling on a table 1 x 6" grade 5, a small but visible kink. These are the first G5s i;ve been able to kink, I can feel them flexing but they spring back and don't keep their set. Not long now...... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted July 8, 2004 Author Share Posted July 8, 2004 09 July 04 Not a bending workout but a killer forearm blaster. One of the guys on the Dragondoor forum laid out his 1000 rep challenge. Snatch a 16kg kettlebell 1000 times without putting it down, swapping hands after every 10 reps is ok though. Since i'm training for the snatch test at Pavels RKC course anyway I decided to have a go. I got 148 before my grip blew out. At the end of it my forearms felt like concrete. Watch this space for bigger numbers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted July 10, 2004 Author Share Posted July 10, 2004 10 July 04 Another below average bending session tonight Meant to be a volume session but I felt really crap and I stopped after 4 bends. 5" x 5.6mm nail x 1 5 1/2" x 5.6mm nail x3 Too much shift work and not enough sleep Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bencrush Posted July 11, 2004 Share Posted July 11, 2004 Don you're making great progress. And I definitely feel your pain about the shift work. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted August 7, 2004 Author Share Posted August 7, 2004 7 Aug 04 I've had a pretty poor month of bending training. Anyway yesterday I decided to give double overhand a go and ripped through 5 medium tough nails in a short period of time. I'm still looking for some 6" stock between a blue and a grade 5, 60d nails would be ideal but I can't get them here! Also a few days ago I went to the hardware store to buy more nails for volume work but they have new stock and these nails are really soft Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nagual Posted August 7, 2004 Share Posted August 7, 2004 Have you tried taping 2 softer nails together? I have a box full of nails that I didn't know what to do with other than waste at warming up with. I started taping together the nails and they got suprisingly hard to bend. (I don't really feel warming up on soft nails is productive, usually take a tough nail and progressively try bending it harder and harder... until I go full out, that does the trick) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Octogen Posted August 8, 2004 Author Share Posted August 8, 2004 Yeah i'm going to try that on wednesday I also bought some 6" x 5/16" grade 2s but they didn't want to budge at all! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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